TOKYO, Aug 25 Reuters The U.S. dollar edged back from a near twodecade peak against a basket of major currencies on Thursday as investors awaited a speech by Federal Reserve Chair Jerome Powell the following day for fresh clues on the path for monetary policy.

Gains for Australia39;s dollar, a liquid proxy for trading China39;s economic outlook, outpaced developedmarket peers as it tracked a stronger yuan.

The South Korean won rose after the central bank raised its inflation forecast, pointing to further policy tightening ahead.

The U.S. dollar index , which measures the greenback against six counterparts, eased 0.19 to 108.42, but remained not far from its highest since September 2002 at 109.29, touched in midJuly.

Investors have been bracing for the Fed to double down on its commitment to crushing inflation at its annual gathering in Jackson Hole, Wyoming. 

Money markets have pared back expectations that the U.S. central bank could tilt to a slower pace of rate hikes following a chorus of hawkish Fed commentary in recent weeks, and currently lay 58.5 odds on another supersized 75 basispoint rate hike next month versus 41.5 probability of a half point increase.

Expectations of a hawkish message from FOMC Chair Powell at Jackson Hole will likely keep upward pressure on the USD, Commonwealth Bank of Australia analyst Kristina Clifton wrote in a client note.

However, there is a risk that the speech is deemed not hawkish enough and that we see some retracement in the…